LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 197
EP.197 The Day the Sheep Devoured the Wolf (1)
”Why is it always you who gets caught in this?”
”That’s exactly what I want to ask you…”
Apies spoke to me with a tone that suggested she was at a loss for words.
But the person most bewildered here was none other than me.
In a desolate place where not a single trace of humanity could be found, I was unexpectedly met with a crowd of people.
To top it off, I had to confront the prime suspect believed to be behind this entire fiasco.
Should I call it luck or misfortune?
No matter how inseparably linked adventurers and disasters are, I couldn’t help but think my unfortunate fate that seems to attract disasters others might overlook was somewhat peculiar.
My mind was in a complex state.
”The adventurers you rescued are all safe. Thanks to the quick action of Regis, I believe they’ll regain consciousness soon if they can rest for a while.”
”You’re too kind. Sister, you were the one who suffered a lot.”
”Also, during the process of subduing them, I had to check their belongings… It certainly seems they are a high-ranking group of adventurers acting under a royal decree. ”
”I see…”
As the sister said this, what appeared before us was a royal insignia that confirmed they had been given a royal command. It was a royal seal.
Although it wasn’t as prestigious as the Vatican, which refers to its clergy as the children of God, the royal family, equally noble, was known to grant royal commands even to adventurers.
”It seems the royal family is also suspicious that this dungeon might be linked to the Demon King…”
At that moment, the silence that hung in the air was safe to consider as tacit agreement.
My experiences and instincts as an adventurer, the presumed goddess’s testimony, and all the other prior circumstances clearly indicated that the dungeon was linked to the Demon King.
”Ugh…”
Everyone present, including myself, fell into a moment of contemplation.
While the emergence of the Demon King felt somewhat abrupt, it wasn’t surprising as we had all expected it would happen someday.
Moreover, it was the duty of the Hero to defeat the Demon King, and it was the very purpose of the Hero Party to exist.
Instead of being scared, my fellow party members, who have been dragged into this mess, seemed to be igniting their fierce will as if they had been waiting eagerly for this moment.
The only issue was that we weren’t in the best condition right now.
Or rather, the party that should ideally be in perfect form was disrupted because of me.
Under normal circumstances, the blessing that allows a Hero to seal the core of the Demon King should rest within the Hero.
That holy blessing had now unfortunately transferred into my own body instead.
Because of that, the options left before us were just two.
First, somehow convince the Saint to cook me a nice meal so that the blessing within me could be transferred back to the Hero.
Second, considering things have come this far, I might have to end the Demon King’s life instead of the Hero.
It couldn’t possibly be feasible.
The oppressive tension amongst us emerged from that simple yet clear conclusion.
”I will do my best to convince the Saint…”
”I will help too…”
”Yeah, just do your best…”
The sister and I, who were tying up our utmost determination, received a somewhat disheartened yet supportive comment from Apies.
Although I said I would try, I was also half-giving up on the idea.
There had been no precedent where the blessing of the Hero had been transferred back to someone else, and the Saint herself seemed to have no recollection of the moment when she blessed me.
I could already vividly imagine myself trembling in front of the Demon King, on the verge of tears.
”Hmm, it seems that’s not the only problem, though.”
With a breath soaked in regret, Dawna muttered.
The end of her thick wooden staff resolutely pointed to the culprit we had subdued and bound.
White hair. Red eyes. Tanned skin.
The very appearance that was strikingly similar to the assailants who had attacked the Hero before.
A strength that overwhelmingly overshadowed even a remarkably talented adventurer capable of issuing royal commands.
At this point, it would actually seem more bizarre if this person had no ties to those before.
”They said they couldn’t become a Saint, right? If the emergence of the Demon King and the disappearance of the nearby inhabitants are deeply connected to them, then the severity of the situation is beyond what we initially thought.”
Gulp.
I swallowed hard for a moment.
I had shared everything I knew with my comrades about the background of the Saint and the dark side of the Vatican, under mutual consent with the sister.
And I had beforehand received a promise that they would join me in any plan to rectify such discrepancies once we safely defeated the Demon King.
In truth, I would have liked to take action right away, but if something went wrong at the Vatican before defeating the Demon King, it would undoubtedly cause unnecessary chaos among the citizens of the system, so I had no choice but to postpone the plans.
It was a disaster that even renowned prophets could not confidently predict when, where, and how the Demon King would appear.
Because of this, I had come to consider that moment to be far in the distant future.
But now that the Demon King had manifested, and the target was the Vatican—
This chaotic time was perfectly the right opportunity for me to enact my plans.
The only issue was that a foreign element had interfered with the most basic premise needed for those plans: the defeat of the Demon King.
Having a troublesome hindrance while trying to pull off something that could shake the very foundation of humanity would be nothing short of madness.
Moreover, this time, the Demon King was an unprecedented irregular.
A deathly shadow deeply entangled with candidates who bore tremendous grudge against the Saint and those around her.
Without the holy power lent by the Saint, I was a third-rate priest who wouldn’t even be able to protect myself.
I wasn’t afraid of death.
What truly terrified me was seeing my comrades bleed because of my inadequacies.
”Hey. Don’t rush to conclusions. Just think it over thoroughly. There’s still plenty of time, you know.”
”Lowville, as I said before, no matter what choice you make or what future awaits you, we will never blame you.”
Drip drip. Sweat dripped down as I sat deep in thought for a while.
Did I look that pitiful?
As if they had rehearsed it beforehand, Apies and Dawna took turns comforting me.
”R-Regis…”
The sister, who had been quietly observing, finally chimed in with a worried voice.
The discussion regarding whether Regis Lowville would participate in defeating the Demon King had been previously tied-up in ‘pending.’
But now, with civilians being caught up in the aftermath, and with the potential for this to happen again, further delaying judgment would be irresponsible.
My mouth felt parched, and suddenly my chest felt heavy.
Would lighting a cigarette help me clear this knot in my heart?
As my mind remained consumed by the heavy thoughts for some time—
”By the way, where has the Hero gone again? I swear they were just here a moment ago…”
”I don’t know, suddenly Bigtim ran off with some excited face talking about sexy underwear and aphrodisiacs?”
”Is this another gift for their mentor? Who knows if they realize the severity of the situation? Honestly…”
Another problem, which I had temporarily shelved, resurfaced in my mind like a buoy on the ocean.
When Dawna referred to the mentor, she was talking about Haren, who had once been my direct senior and the other supporter of the Hero siblings.
No matter how much they were only using his name, they couldn’t neglect the benefactor who had cared for them, so the Hero and Bigtim would often send various gifts to the mentor’s house.
The catch was that the gifts adhered more to the requests of the mentor’s wife than Haren’s actual choices, which mainly consisted of sexy underwear and high-end aphrodisiac.
Wasn’t it said that their mother’s wish was to gather her children into an order of knights?
In the past, I would have simply watched that spectacle from a distance with ease, but right now, I couldn’t feel that way at all.
”By the way, why are they buying gifts together now? The Hero used to be completely clueless in that area and always left it to Bigtim.”
”Hmm, thinking about it…”
It was evidently clear that this was going to bring fire to my own body.
—
Thump thump.
With emotions that defy description causing my heart to incessantly pound, I gradually opened the door.
The place where the Hero had called me was a rather charming house that a relatively wealthy merchant might consider for a honeymoon home.
It wasn’t common cheap wood but a beautiful brick house that looked freshly made.
It wasn’t that big, but the nice courtyard was large enough for two or three children to frolic around.
The colorful flowers in the flowerbed climbed the walls of the house, creating a natural palette that could captivate anyone who gazed upon it.
”Uh, Hero?”
Creeeak.
There was no response, but I could clearly sense his presence.
As I followed the aura of the Hero, much like Hansel and Gretel chasing crumbs, my steps halted at the most secret and secluded part of the house.
The bedroom.
”Hero, are you here?”
Giggle.
Instead of an answer, a soft giggle danced through the air.
The innocent voice reminiscent of a playful child eased some of my burdens.
”I’m… going to open the door…?”
This time, I felt some kind of response, but that whispering voice drowned in the chaos resonating in my heart like thunder.
Creeeak. I braced my hand on the doorknob, forcing myself to open the door.
What lay before me was—
”Royal!”